Moving On: The Raven
by DropCookie
Summary: When Sasuke comes back, Sakura and Naruto aren't sure they have a place left in their heart for him. Konoha is seemingly ready to accept him, but are their feelings ready for him? My first fanfic, go easy on me. NaruSaku pairing. R&R?
1. Chapter 1

Ahem. **Disclaimer: These charaters do not belong to me. They were created and are owned by Masashi Kishimoto.**

This is what I wished had happened after Sasuke killed Itachi. Starting with the fact that I didn't really want him to kill Itachi. But whatever. I don't have the time to drag out the intro. Ideas are floating out of my head as I type!

Shikamaru squinted at the sun to look at the clouds, and then proceeded to lie down on the cold hardwood floor. Temari, on visit from Suna, scooted over and poked him. Chouji, who had been playing chess with him, sighed. "Is there something wrong?" he asked Shikamaru.

"I don't really know," said Shikamaru, which was a bit unusual, him being the genius of the team. It almost seemed like he didn't care. Chouji knew better. "I think it's something important though," continued Shikamaru, "Let's just hope it turns out for the best." Ino, who had just walked in, rolled her eyes. Temari made a similar movement. Of course, they just thought that Shikamaru had been influenced by the broiling sun and his own constant drowsiness. But he was right very often, wasn't he? Everyone who had heard him had the same thought on their mind:

What if he was right?

Sakura ran up to Sai and Naruto, who appeared to be eating his fifth bowl of ramen in one sitting. Sakura saw the bowl and wanted to take it away from him. It wasn't even his record. She managed to ignore it and waved hello. "What's up?" she said brightly. She hoped that Sai wouldn't spoil her good mood. Happiness was hard to come by ever since Sasuke left. Naruto, his mouth full, just gave her a big thumbs up. Sai, the social idiot, just gave her a confused look. Naruto had finished his mouthful long enough to speak. "Did the old lady give us a new mission yet?" before stuffing his face again. Sakura shook her head. Tsunade had been preoccupied upping the defenses of the village. She didn't want another Orochimaru coming in. Sakura tried to be positive while she ordered a miso ramen. She didn't want to find out who the next Orochimaru would be. Her thought started to drift off.

Naruto, who pretty much knew Sakura better than anyone else, wanted to pound the table in frustation. He knew what Sakura was thinking. Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke. Sure, he was like a brother to Naruto, but brothers practically lived to be annoying, and Sasuke was doing his job even while absent. Naruto still missed him, of course. Training with Sai was no fun. He just bound you up with his snakes and then left to look up more books on _friendship_. Joy. Naruto dipped back into his ramen. He'd seen Sasuke with his very own eyes. Was he the same person as before?

Tsunade was on supervision for strengthening defenses. She ran a restless hadn through her hair and repressed the urge to punch down the entire wall. She was just about to when a messenger came up to her. "It has been reported that Uchiha Itachi has passed away." Tsunade, shocked, quickly sucked her breath in. Is this what Naruto and Sakura had been looking for? Was Sasuke coming back?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Sakura had finished her bowl of ramen and was actually quite satisfied, considering the fact that she had been going through intense training, practically living off soldier pills. Kakashi-sensei had already told her once or twice that it wasn't good for her, _But whatever, _she thought, as she finished her bowl off. _Eat now, think later._ Of course, since she was eating, she'd stopped thinking, and was startled in a very un-kunoichi like way when a messenger popped himself down in front of her. She jumped and nearly broke the bowl. Sakura was gripping it tightly now. "Is there a mission for us now?" she asked.

"No, the Hokage wishes to see you," he said calmly, in that infuriating way Sakura hated. The bowl she was holding cracked just a little. Tsunade knew her too well. She had done this just to annoy Sakura. And make her get over to the office faster. She sighed. "Tell her I'm coming," she told the messenger. "Naruto as well," the messenger nodded at Naruto, who was spacing out next to Sakura. She slapped him quickly, then nodded back at the messenger. He disappeared in a flash of smoke. Sakura gave a stunned Naruto a firm pat on the back, the said, "C'mon, Tsunade-sama is waiting for us."

"I've received information that I think you should know about, Sakura, Naruto," started Tsunade. Sakura noted that she seemed a bit tense. What was she afraid of? "Tsunade-sama?" she whispered.

"Sasuke-kun has killed Uchiha Itachi," she said. Naruto looked like he was going to burst in suprise.

In fact, he did.

"WHAT?!" he cried. Sakura just put her hands over her mouth in shock. Sasuke had finally fufilled his life-long goal. She began to wonder how he was feeling. This made her unprepared for what Tsunade said next. "He could be coming back to Konoha," she said softly. Sakura immediately pulled up a chair so she could sit. Naruto, on the other hand, looked like he was going to pass out. "It's alright. Take deep breaths. Calm down," coached Sakura, in an attempt to keep Naruto concious. Thankfully, it worked. "He's coming back?" she demanded. Was she really ready to forgive Sasuke? She had no idea. She wished she knew if he had a place in this town now. Probably not.

But of couse, he was an _Uchiha._

Naruto was thinking the same thing as Sakura. Sasuke was the last of a very powerful clan. He would likely be coming back to open arms. Through him, Konoha would only get stronger. Tsunade seemed to read their minds. She practically said so. "I know what you're thinking," said Tsunade, "And sadly, you're right. Having him here would make Konoha much stonger. That's why I've decided to put him on probation." Tsunade suddenly stood up. "Alright. I think you need some time to absorb this. You may leave," she concluded, as she shuffled a stilled stunned Naruto and Sakura out the door. When they were a fair distance away Tsunade shut the door and sighed. "What more shall that spitefull clan inflict on us?" she asked the ceiling.

Sakura recovered slightly when she walked out the door. "Do you want to go train?" she asked Naruto. He nodded and smiled. Then the two went off to enjoy the few days they had left as a two-man team.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto.** I would disappoint you all if I did. Believe me.

Yay! On to chapter three. I always make time for things like this. Believe it! Get it? Even though I am doing this in the middles of my socials homework. Gosh. Bad Girl. Anyways, here's current life in Sasuke's view:

Sasuke stared down at his supposed teammates while they were setting up camp for the night. He was sitting on a tree branch, where he himself would spend the night. He had first watch, and he doubted he was going to get any sleep anyway. Suigetsu called up to him,"Do you even want any dinner?!" he called, barely audible. Sasuke nodded absently, and Suigetsu threw him a rice roll from the base of the trunk. Sasuke caught it deftly. He only had one thing on his mind right now, of course.

Konoha. He had asked if the village would accept his return. _The answer was so obvious_, he thought, but there was still a trace of conscience left, and he couldn't help but worry about Sakura and Naruto. _How would they react to my return?_he would wonder, then he would shake the very thought out of his head in annoyance. Now that his revenge was complete, he was ready to take what would happen next. But that stupid conscience just kept coming back, and it was coming more and more often. It had been his fault in the first place. _He _had been the one who had left them. Did they have a new team? Sasuke was trying incredibly hard to suppress his excitement. But he couldn't deny it. He was excited.

"Sasuke, are you eating that or what?" said Karin, who was now seated next to him. Sasuke sighed and bit into his rice roll.

It was going to be a long night.

Sakura, coincidentally also seated on a tree, was thinking about everything. Her career, Naruto, Kakashi, Sai, Sasuke, the village, food, everything. All at once. It was actually quite overwhelming. Her body could practically feel her mental strain. In fact, her hair was starting to frizz a bit when Naruto came up on the branch opposite of her tree. "So I guess you're taking this as hard as me, huh?" asked Naruto.

"Maybe harder, I'm not sure," she said, and sighed. "I just don't know what we'll do when he comes back, you know? It's as if he's dead and is coming back to life. We spent so much time looking for him just so that he could go back by himself. But... I guess he is coming back. That's the important thing..." she trailed off and stared up at the clouds. Naruto idly threw a kunai at a nearby target. Sasuke was coming in just over a week. They would have to get ready. At least, that was what Tsunade had said. What the heck did she mean by that? The jumped off the tree simultaneously, and went out to the barbecue shop, where everyone was waiting, to break the somewhat good news.

Most of them had the same reaction as Naruto had had. "WHAT?!" they all screamed at once. Sakura rolled her eyes when Ino started to literally squeal with joy. Shikamaru just groaned. The shopkeeper gave them a threatening look. They all shut up, then started laughing. Tsunade walked in, and Sakura could tell she was a bit tipsy. "I forgot to tell you two,"she said, looking at the two-man team 7,"Sasuke said he would be bringing a girl..."she said almost dreamily, a side effect of the alchohol. Ino immediatlely stopped her happy dance. Sasuke, anti-social Sasuke, with a girl!?

None of the teams could picture this. Of course, it was near impossible.

**A/N: So now Karin is in the picture. As much as I hate her, who else is there for Sasuke? He does want to revive his clan. How is he going to do that without a girl? Ino is totally off-limits. That is just plain gross. So Karin is coming to town. Sorry Karin-haters!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Hihihi! So... this is chapter five... Sorry if you think I'm dragging this out, I'm totally not trying to! He comes back next chapter! I swear! Bwahahaha Karin hits her head in this chappy...

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Sasuke and Karin leaped from tree to tree while Sasuke tried to rub the grit from his crimson eyes. Karin would've tried to take off her glasses and charm him by now, but then she would've crashed into a tree. Nevertheless, she kept attempting to pull them off. The two had broken off with Suigetsu and Jugo earlier that morning. Sasuke wondered blankly if they would miss him. Wait, nevermind. Suigetsu would be glad he was gone. Jugo had always been a little indifferent, but now Sasuke realised that Suigetsu might not be able to handle his murderous impulses. Sasuke's brain had actually coaxed him into worrying somewhat when Karin finally managed to yank her glasses off. "So, would you, um, like to go out sometime in Konoha?" she asked in an attempt at fake shyness. Karin was anything but shy, of course.

Sasuke just gave her the answer he had always given Sakura. "No," he said.

Then he tried to be subtle when he leaped to the farthest tree away from her. His gaze drifted away, and his hair started whipping all over the place. Sasuke ran his fingers through it to tame it. That just made it worse. Oh well. Karin, now unable to see, smacked straight into a tree. Sasuke fought down his urge to grin. He coughed loudly to cover up his laugh. By the time they set off again, Karin had a slight bump on her forehead and a mildly discoloured bandage wrapped around it.

Sasuke desperately tried not to laugh.

Karin just grumbled something about poisoning his food.

Sakura blocked Naruto's doorway as she inspected his cleaner-than-usual house. He had tidied up to make Sakura get off his back about it. Now he was worried that it wouldn't work. She looked at everything from his weapons to his underwear drawers to make sure everything was neat and tidy. She was excited, Naruto could tell. He liked seeing her happy, even if it was about Sasuke.

He started to have second thoughts when she inspected his kitchen. Sakura opened the fridge and was surprised to find that it was completely empty. Naruto ate a _lot_. His fridge couldn't possibly be _empty_. Suspicious, she started to raid all of his cupboards, and was just as suprised at what was inside. Well, not really. Inside was enough instant ramen to keep an entire city alive for a year. Sakura turned around and glared at Naruto. He smiled sheepishly, then his expression turned into one of horror when she started to drag him to the supermarket. "For once in your life, you are going to eat a normal meal!" she declared to the sky, and Naruto gulped and nodded.

Naruto was actually sort of surprised to find that Sakura could indeed cook. They sat down to a meal of sushi and tempura when it occured to Naruto thatTsunade might be able to cook. He shuddered. He hoped that Sakura wouldn't grow up to be a gambler. Dinner was quiet, each person consumed in their own thoughts.

Sakura insisted that she could walk home by herself, Naruto was for once to tired to argue. Sasuke was coming the next day. So he kissed her cheek and showed her out.

Needless to say, Sakura was very stunned when she walked home that night.

**Yay! It has happened!! Naruto has made a move! Since doesn't happen a lot in the manga I'm going to make it happen here!**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**So, I haven't actually touched my notebook for about a week. I was sorta in mourning for my friend, who no longer likes Naruto. *Sob* Anyway, Sasuke's coming back! He is here! ~Suspense... By the way, does anyone know about Karin's past? I didn't know, so I just made one up. E-mail me with the story if you know!**

Sasuke and Karin had now reached the main road, and had started to slow from a jumping dash to a brisk walk as they neared Konoha. Karin was bristling with excitement. She wanted to meet the friends that Sasuke never talked about. She knew they existed, he just never said anything. Sasuke was just shy, she concluded. Karin also wanted to make some friends of her own. Karin herself had never really had friends. Not that she remembered, anyway. Orochimaru had kidnapped her, then erased her memories so that she wouldn't be able to go back even if she wanted to. Another reason she wanted to get to Konoha was to show off her bond with Sasuke. Karin could tell that he was a guy who pretty much had a fan club. Now if only she could get past his resolve of steel...

Sasuke hadn't yet noticed Karin's mischievous behaviour. He was too busy feeling nostalgic. The last time he had walked down this road was when he had left the village, two years ago. Naruto had dashed on this road to try and find him. Sakura had tried to stop him on this road. Sasuke had finished what he started, and he was coming back. To open arms, hopefully.

Suddenly, a gate became visible in the distance. Sasuke squinted. He could see a bright pink head and a spiky blond head. The two people were waving at him. Sasuke for the second time that week.

He was home.

_*Earlier in the day*_

Sakura slammed her alarm clock so hard it that a few seconds later, she realised that she had broken it. She swore lightly. It was the third alarm clock of the week. Then she remembered something very important.

**Sasuke was coming today.**

It was obvious that Naruto would be late, being a late sleeper, so she raced to finish her daily hygiene as so that she could go to wake him up. She nearly broke her drawers throwing them open, and was running around while brushing her teeth when she realised something _else_ that was important too. A blush crept to her cheek as she touched it, and she stared at her own red face it the bathroom mirror. _Naruto._ How did she feel about him? "I would... do anything to protect them. Naruto and Sasuke," she whispered to herself, then slapped both her cheeks as she ran downstairs to wolf down her breakfast.

Naruto, despite what Sakura thought, was wide awake. His green cap lay folded neatly in a corner, and he was sitting on his windowsill. He knew Sakura was coming for him anyways. He smiled at his actions last night. What did she think of that? Naruto heated up some water to make himself some instant ramen. Sasuke was coming back. At least he wouldn't have to go through the trouble of finding him now. He sighed. Doubtless the_ girl_ he was bringing with him would make every other girl in Konoha jealous. Well, maybe just Ino.

Naruto heard a loud thumping at the door. "Coming," he said, hoping that Sakura wouldn't break his door down. It was going to be a long day.

_*Present*_

Sakura wanted to scream with joy. He was here in flesh and blood. Then her urge stopped when she saw the girl that was with him. Her hair. It was bright _red._ Sasuke seemed to have a taste for girls with oddly coloured hair, she noticed. Her smile turned into a grimace.

Karin had similar thoughts on her mind. She hadn't known that one of Sasuke best friends had been a girl. With _pink_ hair, nonetheless. Then she saw the way the blonde boy looked at the pink haired girl. Sasuke had _competition_? Who would be able to compete with Sasuke?

She went back to the pink-haired girl. Only time will tell, thought Karin carelessly.

_Only time will tell._

**So, chapter five is done. R&R? Please? Anyways, did anyone else notice that Sasuke has weird taste in hair colour? I mean, _pink and red. _Or maybe it was just the mangaka's fault.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Hi everyone! I'm sorry, I got this out kinda/really late didn't I? Well, no more of this! I will update this regulerly from now on. I can't figure out how to make the story longer though. I gotta go in chapter form. I love how Naruto acts like an old man in this chappy, as if introducing his ex-wife to his wife. [-^(. .)^-]**

Sakura snorted stiffly as she watched Karin rub against Sasuke like a little kitten. She was getting annoyed, just seeing that girl's expression. She wanted to tear the girl's hair out, and she probably could've, but she herself had very strangely coloured hair. Fingering the pink locks, she absentmindedly started to braid it while Naruto got her something to eat. She wished she had gone with him. Naruto was obviously as uncomfortable as she was with Sasuke, and had taken the first chance to leave.

And it was obvious that neither of then liked Karin. With her glasses on, she was relatively shinobi-like, but without them, Karin reminded Sakura of a soul-sucking monster with flames for hair, that had set its sights on Uchiha Sasuke. He treated Karin like he had once treated Sakura, by simply brushing her off. Sakura remembered how determined she was to get him to go out with her. When she thought about it, it seemed like a long time ago. She was older now, and knew, though she would do anything to save Sasuke, she didn't love him. Not like that anyway. He was loved like a brother. Sakura now had five or so braids in her hair, and she was concentrating on turning three of the braids into yet another braid, when Sasuke spoke aloud. He had been so quiet Sakura nearly broke off a bit of the table in surprise.

"What can you do now, Sakura?" Sasuke asked quietly. Sakura smiled. Something that she could relate to. Her own line of work. "I'm a medic ninja, among some other special abilities," she said. She wouldn't reveal some of the things that made her special just yet, she decided. "Naruto says you've been studing with Tsunade recently," he said, in just a whisper, so that Karin couldn't hear. "Be careful," he warned, "Karin's getting ideas. Don't let her hurt you." Sakura held he breath and looked at the redhead. Karin was staring right at her. They both made eye contact for a second, then they both looked away.

Finally, to Sakura's relief, Naruto came back. With ramen, to her amusement. Naruto grinned at her, then gave her a bowl of scalding hot miso ramen. "Why don't you and Karin get to know each other?" said Naruto in an oddly mature voice. Sakura nodded reluctantly, because she couldn't say no of course, and got up to carry her bowl to another table. Karin followed suit.

"So, how long have you known Sasuke?" asked Karin, leaning closer. Karin reminded Sakura of those spies she often heard Tsunade talk about. She certainly didn't look like one. "Since we met in the shinobi training school, about eight years ago," replied Sakura, "But I haven't seen him since he left the village about two years ago. In reality, they had met up, before he killed Itachi, but Sasuke had very badly injured them. She wondered what the limits of his strength were. They seemed much like Naruto's, boundless yet unpredictable. She glanced over at him now. She had the urge to laugh. Naruto was bombarding him with questions. Sasuke looked like a wise raven, while Naruto was a little baby chick, wanting to know everything about the world. Sakura settled down and ate her dinner, content about the way the day had turned out.

*_Late that evening*_

Sakura was out for a late-night walk. The ramen seemed even better than usual. She hadn't been this happy for a long time. Feeling nostalgic, she started walking towards their old training area, where Kakashi-sensei had given them the bell test for the first time. Sakura stared at the three posts. She noticed a little chopstick on the ground, from when Sasuke had let Naruto share his bento. She laughed out loud.

Sakura would later acknowlage that this was a big mistake. A silhoutte leaped out at her attacking her with uparalled speed. Actually you could compare the speed with Sakura's. She blocked with a kunai and immediately threw it at the silouette. She heard to sound of flesh being cut. Good. Sakura disappeared into the shadows.

_Be careful, said Sasuke._

**_A/N_: Did you like it? I swear I will be on time next time!!!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**Oh my god, I was watching The Carpal Tunnel of Love while writing this, and was totally traumatized. These poor little cartoon bunny rabbits get speared through by this and that. Very gory. Ugh. But it was hilarious anyway.**

Sasuke tried to ignore the alarm clock when it woke him, but in the end the annoying beeping got the better of him and he sliced it cleanly in half with his katana. _Shit_, he swore mentally. Sakura had given him that to make sure he woke up on time today. Sasuke hoped she wouldn't mind. But he noted that she seemed to have a drawer full of alarm clocks when he had looked over her shoulder. Maybe she just destroyed them regularly. He wondered what Sakura's powers were like now. _Well,_ he thought, _I guess I'll just have to find out_.

They were going training today, in an effort to get to know each other better. Sasuke had no idea how this was going to help. Karin had looked a bit edgy last night, it was obvious. She hadn't taken her glasses off and tried to lean on his shoulder while they were walking, and she hadn't even tried to pretend to be tired. There had been a few weapons layed out at her kitchen table, which she had hurried to hide. Now Sasuke was starting to worry. Did she attack Sakura after all? Sasuke rushed to the bakery to get his breakfast, then rushed even faster to get to training grounds, where he had first practiced with Kakashi.

_Meanwhile..._

Sakura was busy taking a long, hot bath after running home so fast last night she had pulled some muscles. Of course, she'd already healed these, but she liked any excuse to take a bath, and shinobi didn't get to rest often. Especially the Hokage's apprentice, who spent quite a bit of time trying to rouse her teacher from her hangovers. That in itself was quite a lot of work. Sakura got out of the bath and got dressed. She stared at herself in the mirror, then slapped herself gently (for she had to be gentle or she would end up with a bruise) and went to despose of her fourth broken alarm clock of the week.

Sakura mused about Naruto as she walked to her favourite bakery to get something to eat. She hadn't been able to talk to him alone since he'd kissed her that night. She followed the scent of fresh bread and walked into _Poptarts_, a small bakery where everything except the bread was covered in some form of sugar. Sakura bought a small bun and a gingerbread man before walking straight into Uchiha Sasuke. "Oh... hi, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke actually felt relieved, much to his surprise, to see Sakura alive and well. She was holding some yummy-looking bread in her hands, and he promptly bought some as well. As they left Poptarts, Sasuke started to question her, to check for injuries he couldn't see. "So... did you have a nice sleep?" he asked, and she gave him a funny look. Suddenly Sakura burst out laughing. The idea of Sasuke trying to make small talk was just too funny. Sasuke looked away in embarrassment as they walked to the Bell training grounds.

Naruto was waiting for everyone else, sitting on the third of three wooden poles. He grinned when he saw Sakura and Sasuke walk up to the grounds together, and his grin got even wider when he saw Sakura laughing hysterically. _I wonder what he did_, thought Naruto. Sasuke could be so cool sometimes that it was funny. Not that Naruto would ever admit that Sasuke was cool. He was cooler than Sai, in any case. (Not that he would ever say it out loud.)

Sakura ran up to Naruto, and on impulse, presented him with the gingerbread man that she had bought at the bakery earlier. Naruto looked like the Cheshire Cat, his smile was so huge. Sakura sat herself down on another wooden pole, and so did Sasuke. They sat, lost in each of their own thoughts, waiting for Karin. She showed up a few minutes later. Sakura noticed a small flesh wound on her arm, which was covered in strange circular marks. There was a bandage around. _Had Karin been the one who had attacked her last night?_Sakura gazed at the other woman is question, but Karin met her gaze firmly. Sasuke took Karin by the arm and led her to his wooden post. Sakura turned around and pulled something out of her pocket. She whirled around, grinning.

Sakura was holding up four small bells.

"We have until tonight to steal these bells from the other team," stated Sakura gently,"Naruto and I, Karin and Sasuke. Alright?" Each team nodded. Sakura handed Karin and Sasuke the bells. "Other than that, there aren't any rules." Sakura put a hand on Naruto's shoulder to keep him from going straightaway.

"Go!" shouted Sakura, and the two teams fled in different directions.

It had begun.

**A/N: So, you like? I'm starting a new fanfic for those who like Naruto in the high school setting. I love them, but they all have really bad grammar, so I gave up, and I'm starting my own! It's GaaSaku though, because I kinda like that couple too. Yeah. So, that's the end of the seventh chapter. Hope that you enjoyed it.**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Hi everyone! I just realised that I've forgotten to do the disclaimer thing at the beginning of each chapter. So, we are on to chapter eight!!! I've sorta figured out the ending for this whole shebang. Hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Otherwise the messenger frog would not have been killed and Naruto would be at the village already.**

Sasuke sat quietly in a tree, with Karin on the opposite branch. His sharingan was activated, but it was obvious that no one was going to go all out on each other. There was no point. But he had agreed, wanting to know the abilities of his former teamates. He was surprised that Tsunade wasn't watching them. Did she know of his powers? Sasuke was about to start cleaning his katana while hiding when he noticed a strange sound. A crackling sound. He looked down. _Crap_, he thought. While he had been spacing out, someone had somehow managed to cut off the branch he was sitting on. He jumped to the next tree, only to have to leap desperatly to the next when the branch on that tree fall down too. Footsteps seemed to dash off in another direction. He threw some kunai, even though he knew they would miss. Sasuke jumped gracefully to the ground.

He stared at the trees in shock. The branches hadn't been broken. The whole _tree_ had fallen over.

Had someone _knocked down the whole tree?! _Sasuke found himself very awestruck when a figure transported itself next to him and immediately stole his bell. He whipped a kunai at the person's wrist in an attempt to get it back, but the girl, he could see it was Sakura now, grinning at him, just deflected it with her own kunai. She dashed away, and Sasuke didn't bother to go after her. He looked up at Karin, who had been watching him. "So you want to chase them, or not?" he asked. "Alright then," said Karin, and she took off before he could say anything else. Sasuke had noticed the mark on her arm today. She'd said that she had run into a door, but what kind of self-respecting shinobi _ran into a door?!_

Sasuke leaped slowly among the trees after her. So she really had attacked Sakura last night, to no avail. Sakura could now hold her own very well now, it seemed. He smirked. He couldn't help but feel proud. Maybe leaving the village had done something good after all. Naruto seemed stronger too, at the very least a lot smarter. Naruto looked at Sakura in quite a funny way. What would Sakura do about that?

Sasuke pulled himself out of his idle wondering and caught up to Karin. Karin could track chakra, of course, so finding them was no problem. But how to take their target. This was rather like a game, mused Sasuke. Maybe they could just surrender. Oh well, it was too late to turn back now. Karin suddenly started to look nervous. "Be careful... I sense a lot of concentrated chakra," she warned, Sasuke immediately thought of the Rasengan. That move had blown a huge hole in a water tank that day he had fought with Naruto. He braced himself. Suddenly, the ground below them exploded. _An exploding tag?_ Naruto popped out from one of the crevices now deep in the ground, and promptly stole Karin's bell. He grinned just like Sakura had when she challenged them to this in the first place.

Two-man team seven had won the challenge.

Karin stomped the ground so hard the ground dented and she ended up needing to hop on one foot. Sakura squealed and hugged Naruto, whose grin got wider that physically possible as he hugged her back. Sasuke smiled. Those two acted like they had won the lottery.

_Later_

Naruto had decided to host dinner at his house, even though dinner would have to consist of instant ramen and leftover's from the last time Sakura had come over. Sakura shook her head and once again carted him off to the supermarket. They would have a lot to do before Sasuke and Karin could come over. Such as making Naruto's fridge actually look full. She smiled. She was beginning to like this.

**A/N: So, you like? I have way too much time on my hands right about now. Maybe I'll go read someone else's fanfics. Ciao, until next week! .**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

**Well, that took a while, didn't it? Sorry, here you go.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Warm, soft breeze lifted Sasuke's hair out of his face. They had lost big time. Karin was standing next to him, nursing her injured pride. Sasuke chuckled. Karin was funny sometimes. Like when she didn't notice his presence. Sakura had long dragged Naruto off the get ready for their visit late in the evening. Karin was wiping her glasses off on her shirt, and when she looked up, she blushed. This didn't happen very often, and Sasuke smiled. They both had another six or seven hours before they went for dinner, so, obviously, it would be a good time for lunch. "Let's go eat," he said to Karin, and he ambled off while staring absently at the clouds. Karin hurried after him.

A certain silhouette crouched in the tree near them. The person had a huge sword strapped to his back. _Sasuke..._ he whispered.

Sasuke glanced back behind him. Nothing. He turned around and went straight ahead. Suigetsu could wait. At least for now. Karin audibly stiffened, sensing the enemy's chakra, but when she saw Sasuke's reaction, she calmed down.

_Chez Naruto_

Sakura was preparing dinner while Naruto chattered at light speed. In fact, he was speaking so fast that Sakura could only catch little snippets of what he was saying.

"That was awesome!"

"and did you see that-"

"then BAM!"

Sakura was half glad she wasn't listening, otherwise by now she would've been in stitches. That really had kicked ass. Her powerful punches only seemed to hold the same amount of chakra as an explosive tag. But get hit by her punch and it was over. She happily listened to Naruto, getting more excited as his voice got louder, until she realized the pot might be crushed under the pressure. She loosened her grip, and as soon as she did so, Naruto walked up to her from behind and gripped her shoulders. Sakura's breath caught, and her heart started beating faster. What was he doing? Was he--

"I like you," he stated.

"I--" That was all Sakura could say, and she felt like passing out.

"Can I think about this?" she asked. Naruto smiled, and nodded. Sakura let out a huge breath of relief. Then she went back to her soup. It was boiling rather a lot now, so she panicked for a moment before Naruto turned it down. She raised and eyebrow. "I can cook, you know. Just not very well," said Naruto, and Sakura laughed. The tension was broken. For the moment. They proceeded to converse like normal human beings. But they could both feel that little twinge, and she knew she would have to give an answer soon.

Finally, Sasuke and Karin came in. Karin held a snicker at the sight of Sakura's look of pure relief. When they were seated, Sakura each ladled them a bowl of soup. "Sorry, but Naruto's fridge was completely empty, so we didn't make too much," she said, glaring at Naruto. He shot her a cheeky grin, and then she sat back down. The food was actually very good, thought Karin. This girl could cook. The poor girl might've had to cater for the Hokage though. Figures. Later, the two boys had decided to bond by watching a football game (Where Naruto got something as modern as a TV no one knew) and rooting for opposite teams. And so, Karin and Sakura were left together in the kitchen. Karin started a conversation with Sakura while Sakura was washing the dishes.

"Soooo...Naruto?"

Sakura stiffened and said nothing.

"There's nothing wrong with that. Why don't you just give him and answer? You like him or you don't. Simple. Or you just want to be friends, or you're afraid of commitment, of you just don't think it'll work, or...." she trailed of. They laughed, sharing their first friendly moment. "Maybe it's not that simple. But so far, that's everything Sasuke's told me each time I ask him out. Or sometimes he just says no, and sometimes he says nothing," said Karin, and Sakura saw a part of herself in her.

"I used to like Sasuke a lot," admitted Sakura. It was Karin's turn to stiffen. "I used to hate Naruto, but now, he's one of my best friends, and I can't live without him." Sakura sucked in her breath. She knew her answer. Karin smirked. Sakura continued her story. "I used to compete for him with this other girl, Ino. Maybe I'll introduce you sometime. But she still likes him, so that might be a bit dangerous," she said, chuckling a little. She could practically hear Karin growling. "I'm thinking of blind-dating her to Chouji or Sai or something though," she continued, and Karin relaxed. The room was calm and in harmony. A friendship had been born.

In the meantime, Naruto's football team had won.

_Figures,_ thought Sasuke.

**Well then. Sorry that took like, three weeks. SO MUCH HOMEWORK TT^TT**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

**Well, looks like my laziness got the best of me. Did anyone else get Folie a Deux by Fall Out Boy? It's **_**so **_**good. Anyway, no more waiting.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. But I'm quite happy that he's back now. YES!!!**

Sakura pulled out her drawer full of alarm clocks and sighed contently, a light smile on her face. She set the alarm for 6:00 am, because she would be out training the next day. She flopped on to her bed. That was one of her best days ever. Another Best Day Ever had been the day when Sasuke had almost kissed her, but it was knocked off the list when she found out it was only Naruto disguised as Sasuke. That had been humiliating. Just as Sakura started to drift off the sleep, the phone rang. It was Ino, probably. Sakura just wanted to get to bed. But she decided to talk to her friend, considering she hadn't seen Ino all day. She should probably talk to someone.

"HOW IS SASUKE?" yelled the girl on the other end. Yep, that was definitely Ino.

"Just dandy. Are you okay?" asked Sakura, rubbing her sore ear.

"I just wanted to know how Sasuke was…" said Ino, whimpering like a small puppy. Sakura laughed.

"Sasuke is totally fine. He's just like his old self, except a little more self-concious than used to be, I guess," said Sakura, thinking. It was true. Sasuke _was_ different, but she liked him this way. "He tried to make small talk," she added, "It was hilarious. Karin isn't so bad either. Cocky, but she's nice at heart."

"Really? Well, I'll go visit him and that Karin or whoever tomorrow. Do you know where they live?" asked Ino. Sakura looked up their adresses inside her drawer of alarm clocks. She read it out loud to Ino and then hung up the phone. When she got into be this time, she fell into a long, sweet sleep.

Naruto was cleaning up for no reason, because everyone had been quite neat. He wandered around, trying to keep himself busy, but in the end he just sat at the table and rested his head there. He fell asleep like that.

_An hour later_

There was a loud ringing in Naruto's ears. Assuming that it was an alarm clock, Naruto ignored it and tried to doze off again. This plan failed. The ringing started again, followed by three slow but loud knocks. Naruto dragged himself off his chair, stretching. He checked the kitchen clock. He'd only been sleeping for an hour. Naruto ambled to the door, content to keep his visitor waiting. He peered through the eyehole. Red sharingan glared back at him.

"Open up!" yelled Sasuke.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Sure, sure."

Sasuke walked into the room with the same slow able as Naruto.

"There's someone out there… an old teammate, you could say, following me," said Sasuke, after Naruto had made them both some ramen. Naruto raised his eyebrows. "Do you need help?" asked Naruto. Sasuke was probably, Naruto was pretty sure, much stronger than any ninja in Konoha, save the Hokage.

"No, I just need you to keep Sakura safe and out of—"

Something crashed out of Naruto's window.

Sakura was still sleeping, of course. There was a less dramatic opening of a window to her bedroom, but you could hear the intruder mumbling. "Dang, I _told_ that damn Suigetsu that I didn't want to kidnap the friggin' girl, but _noooo…_" grumbled Jugo.

The mumbling stopped, replaced by a loud cry.

"Let go of me—," silence.

***

Sakura struggled out of the bandages wrapped around her, wanting to scream at the top of her lungs. These people had caught her and thrown her into, into, this, this, this DUMP! She was furious. She stood up and felt out her surroundings. She was stuck in an old fashioned cell, comeplete with bars and a large padlock. Sakura decided to pick the lock. Then she failed. The abducters had stripped her completely of all of her weapons, of course. Mad cackles rose from around her, mocking her. Sakura shouted back angrily at them. There was a huge aura of chakra in this room. It was full of powerful, and crazy, people, and she needed to be careful. Sakura closed her eyes and counted impatiently to ten. Then she opened her blazing green eyes and kicked and punched down three of the bars sealing her inside. She ran out, trying to ignore the wails of those around. She looked around, her eyes finally ajusting to the lack of light. Suddenly she felt like screaming again.

She was surrounded by people, yes, but they were twisted beyond compare. Each one had certain variations of the strange bruises Sasuke had. Each one was overflowing with chakra that made her head spin, that made her dizzy. The strange chakra was eating away at the people, all of them stangely old-looking. Sakura sank to her knees in pain. She had to get out.

_NOW!_ screamed the Inner Sakura.

_Why?_ asked outer Sakura

_You're never going to survive if you stay in here._ _We have to get out! Idiot!_ cried Inner Sakura. Sakura smiled. She hadn't had a visit from Inner for a long time. This had to be important.

_Whatever you say,_ said Sakura. With that, she put all of her remaining strength into her fist, and smashed the door open. Sakura tumbled into the blackness.

***

Naruto jumped onto the table like a startled cat. A man that reminded him of someone, someone dangerous, stood in front of Naruto and Sasuke. "Suigetsu," said Sasuke quietly.

"So I guess this was the guy you were talking about?" said Naruto.

"Yeah," replied Sasuke.

"Let's take this outside then," said Naruto. He smirked. "I'm going to help ou wether you like it or not," he said smugly to Sasuke.

"Fine by me," said Sasuke.

They both jumped out of the broken window, Suigetsu hot on their heels.

**A/N so it's a bit longer then usual, though not by a lot. I go tired of everybody moving around so slowly, just randomly training and all, hence our dramatic break-in. You like?**


End file.
